A Historian Tells Us Where Marriage May Be Headed

KPBS | By KPBS Public Broadcasting

Published September 8, 2008 at 8:33 AM PDT

This story was published more than 16 years ago.

The fight over same-sex marriage in California, and across the country, is part of a larger discussion of what marriage has become and what it ought to be. Marriage in California is now accessible to

Tom Fudge: Due to a recent Supreme Court ruling, California now allows gay and lesbian couples to marry. In fact, same-sex couples can get married in California even if they're not residents of the state.

But what happens when those non-residential couples go home to a state that does not recognize same-sex marriage? Are they not married after all? Well no, they're not. But you can be pretty sure that gay couples, who get married in California but are denied married rights in their home states, will take the matter to court.

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Guests

Charles Kim, family law attorney with the San Diego law firm Yellman and Associates.
Stephanie Coontz, professor of history at Evergreen State College in Washington State. She's author of "Marriage, A History: How Love Conquered Marriage."